Description

Following the deregulation of bus services in the United Kingdom in 1986, it did not take long for many distinctive local liveries to disappear. Only a small number remained under the control of local authorities and Transport for London, which decided on what services it needed for its network.Very quickly the big five bus companies - First, Stagecoach, Arriva, Go-Ahead and National Express - dominated seventy percent of the market and their identities and liveries began to appear throughout Scotland, Wales and England - some with fairly low-key route branding.In more recent years those big companies and other operators have introduced revised colour schemes and local identities and even pre-regulation retro liveries. Richard Walter takes a trip up and down the UK to showcase a few of the ambitious and bold styles and campaigns that have been introduced to help entice more people to use their local public transport.